Michaelwclark.com

Just my stuff

Tag Archives: United States


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i have a dream… (to get this mix right!)

THIS TRACK DELETED – FINAL VERSION NOW AT SOUNDCLOUD… WILL BE POSTING IT ON MLK Day!!!! (Jan 18)

Here’s what I wrote at SoundCloud for this…

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Martin Luther King, Jr.

Martin Luther King, Jr. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” speech (abridged) set to original soundtrack… my challenge is to use entirely free VST plugins.. so theoretically, anyone with a half decent computer could do something like this.

I’ve been experimenting with compressors, limiters, EQ, and expanders.. learning as i go along… would like to get a clean, balanced but also punchy version by MLK day (Jan 20). Can’t really tell how it’s going to sound until I upload it here, because SoundCloud takes the wav file and renders it into mp3. At least, I think it does… 🙂

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Thanks to those who liked my previous versions. I really appreciate the feedback. Negative feedback would be welcome too, as long as it talks about the music and isn’t just a bunch of expletives!

I had to delete the earlier versions. I’ve learned so much in the past few days that I can better see (and hear) how to improve it. This mix seems a bit too boxy. I was trying to level it out. Maybe went a bit too far. Not sure. Will have to take a drive and listen to it then. Everything becomes clear behind the wheel…

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Dream – Radio – Edit – Sc4

– deleted by user –

So here’s the 4th mix of Martin Luther King’s famous “I have a dream” speech. The drum tracks were proportionally lowered at the quiet places and left the same at the loud places. And the funky little.. dee da dee da dee daaaaaa riff was lowered in places too. Seems to be coming together nicely. Won’t know if this is the final version until I hear it in SoundCloud’s mp3 format…

Just listening to it now as I post this… not sure if the drums and glitch tracks need a bit of a fade here and there… but other than that it sounds okay!

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let freedom reign – take 2

https://soundcloud.com/earthpages/let-freedom-reign-take-2

So, basically the same mix as the first take posted yesterday, but the trance synth level is elevated a bit, and all effects are removed from the drum tracks (well, except for the glitch track, but that will stay). Net result should be a cleaner rhythm track.. I’ll probably do one more version with a bit of reverb on the drums, and then choose the best one for MLK day, coming soon!

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Let Freedom Reign

https://soundcloud.com/earthpages/let-freedom-reign

Martin Luther King’s famous “I have a dream” speech (abridged)… set to trancy hip hop… not sure if this is the final version or not… would like to get everything right by MLK day (Jan 20)!

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the show must go on

image via tumblr

I laughed several times today when watching the US news about people “suffering” in the extreme cold. One reporter in NYC was bemoaning the 5º C temperatures. Toronto is colder than that. But it isn’t that bad. Lake Ontario moderates our temps… cooler in summer and warmer in winter than many landlocked places of similar latitude. But on the whole, we grew up with this kind of weather in Canada. Made me proud of how well our country is doing, considering the weather challenges we’ve always had to face.

Anyhow, here’s a shot out our front window today.

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winter waters

Image via Tumblr

Here’s another one with a slight tint from the windshield. Lake Ontario looking south toward good ol’ US of A, from Port Hope, ON.

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Updated my 70s playlist at Songza

Woodstock was in the summer of 69, but its effects lingered on through the 70s – Image via Tumblr

http://songza.com/listen/sock-it-to-me-70s-earthpages-1/

I haven’t had a chance to get out of the city for quite a while and, frankly, it can get boring. The traffic has risen sharply, probably because of the soaring number of condos. Toronto seems to be booming. That’s great, but sometimes I miss the old, quiet city, the old days. So last night I updated my Songza “Sock it to me 70s” playlist.

My 70s list is probably my strongest. I was a young kid then, super enthusiastic about music. Always listening to the radio, hearing my elder brothers and sisters records, and then as I got a bit older, my friends records. Music has always been a passion. Maybe my number one passion. I don’t know. I like a lot of things.

While updating this playlist, one of the things that struck me was how the Canadian music scene differs from the American scene. Generally speaking, I think we tend to like slightly lighter tunes. And we have a Canadian content law up here stipulating that radio stations must play a certain percentage of Canadian songs. I can’t remember exactly how much. But it’s enough to give Canadian artists a chance. Some cheesy stuff got airplay from that law. But a lot of good stuff too. I tried to ditch the cheese and list only what I felt was worthwhile.

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